Settlers rally outside Jerusalem's Shepherd Hotel

Published yesterday (updated) 18/08/2009 11:40

 Jerusalem – Ma’an –

Hundreds of right-wing Israeli settlers demonstrated outside the Shepherd Hotel in Shaikh Jarrah, East Jerusalem on Monday evening,

Former US presidential candidate Mike Huckabee was due to speak at the hotel, which is slated to be razed to make way for a settlement housing complex. Hundreds of right-wing Israeli and American activists were expected to attend the dinner.

Peace activists held a separate demonstration protesting the event, which some called “a provocation.” There was one report that a settler activist was arrested after a scuffle with peace demonstrators, but this could not be immediately verified by Ma’an.

Jewish-American millionaire Irving Moskowitz purchased the hotel in 1985 and recently announced plans to level the building, which predates the 1948 creation of Israel. US President Barack Obama’s administration has urged Israel to stop the plan. This call was rejected by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

While visiting the illegal Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem on Monday, Huckabee criticized Obama’s calls for a freeze on settlement activity in the occupied West Bank.

Huckabee said the US should not "be telling Jewish people in Israel where they should and should not live," according to the AP.

A right-wing former governor of the state of Arkansas, Huckabee is often mentioned as a possible presidential contender in the 2012 election. The Republican is on a three-day visit to the region focusing on settlements in the occupied West Bank and meetings with settler leaders.

The US maintains its embassy in Tel Aviv in recognition of the fact that Israel’s control of East Jerusalem is illegitimate under international law.

Dozens of Palestinians, Israeli leftists protest in Shaikh Jarrah

Tuesday August 18, 2009 03:04 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

Dozens of Palestinian residents of Jerusalem and Israeli leftists held a protest in front of the Shepherds Hotel in Shaikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem, as illegal Israeli fundamental settlers are planning to build an illegal  settlement there. Settlers held a counter protest in the same area.

Israeli sources reported that dozens of policemen were deployed in the area, especially as more than 30 fundamental settlers held a protest in the area to counter the protestors.

Meanwhile, a group of fundamental settlers took over a Palestinian owned house near the old city of Jerusalem. The home is located in Silwan neighborhood, in East Jerusalem, close to a UN run school for Palestinian refugees. Local sources reported that with this new settler post, there are now 40 settler posts inside the Silwan neighborhood.

Meanwhile, fundamental settlers held signed describing the U.S. President Barack Obama as racist and carried manipulated pictures showing Obama wearing a Palestinian Kafiyya, similar to the way late President Yasser Arafat wore his.

They also accused Peace Now Israeli Movement of encouraging terrorism, while leftist described the fundamentalists as fascists.

The protests were held while US Republican Mike Huckabee, who hopes to become the next president of the United States, came in support of the settlers.

He was accompanied by a number of fundamental right-wing members of Knesset, including Uri Ariel and Michael Ben Ari of the National Union Party, David Rotem of the Yisrael Beiteinu Party, and Tzipi Hotlovely of the Likud Party.

Huckabee headed to the hotel to have dinner with the abovementioned fundamentalists.

Expressing support to the illegal Israeli settlement activities, Huckabee stated that the U.S. Administration is too harsh on Israel on settlement issues, and added that he is concerned that some leaders in the United States are telling the Jews not to build in their homeland.